05.27.07 -- STAGE FRIGHT

"Three Musicians" by Pablo Picasso The central figure is a Harlequin playing a guitar, with two musicians by his sides. There is also a dog that can be seen to the left of the musicians with his ears clearly visible.

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Sunday, May 27, 2007

ACROSTIC

By Emily Cox & Henry Rathvon

The indicated links provide information on the entries I found of interest. The quote itself is so true -- but no one has ever said the likes to me as I’d die rather than let anyone know I was nervous. Speaking of death, it is tragic that Eloise Ristad met her end early in a canoe.

RISTAD, A SOPRANO ON HER HEAD

IT IS IN PERFORMANCE THAT WE COURT THE VERY EXPERIENCE THAT TERRIFIES US. A WELL-MEANING FRIEND SAYS THERE’S NOTHING TO GET NERVOUS ABOUT AND IT ALMOST HELPS BECAUSE THE DESIRE TO STRANGLE DISTRACTS US FOR THE MOMENT.

A. ROSTRUM (Platform for public speaking)

B. INSECURE (Out of one’s comfort zone)

C. SHIVER (Feel a frisson; tremble)

D. TAUTEN (Become tense and stiff)

E. ASSEMBLY (Gathering of people)

F. DIFFIDENT (Lacking self-confidence; reserved)

G. ATHLETE (Olympics participant)

H. SOMEWHERE (Wistful number from “West Side Story”)

I. OFFSTAGE (Behind the scenes)

J. PROMETHEUS (Titanic model for Shelley’s Frankenstein)

K. RECITATIVE (Declamatory style of singing)

L. ANXIETY (Glossophobe’s feeling about public speaking)

M. NICHOLS (Oscar-winning director and ex-member of a comedy duo)

N. OSTINATO (Repeated musical phrase, as the two-note theme in “Jaws”)

O. OSNABURG (Drapery material named for a German city where it was originally made)

P. NEWSPRINT (Pulp paper used for daily journalism)

Q. HAMLET (Dramatic character who speaks the line “Words, words, words”)

R. ELECTRET (Polarized material used in microphones and copy machines)

S. RIPTORN (Emmy-winning actor in “The Larry Sanders Show” [2 wds.])

T. HOSTED (Played emcee)

U. ENTRACTE (Brief show between sections of a longer show)

V. AEGISTHUS (Character killed by Orestes in Euripides’ “Electra”)

W. DANGER (Cause for a red light)

For an index to previous ACROSTIC Commentaries: The ACROSTIC Puzzle -- The NY Sunday Times

For cartoon, go to The Crossword Puzzle Illustrated.

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The New York Times Crossword Puzzle solution above is by the author of this blog and does not guarantee accuracy. If you find errors or omissions, you are more than welcome to make note of same in the Comments section of this post -- any corrections found necessary will be executed promptly upon verification.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES -- Crossword Puzzles and Games

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